WILLEMSTAD - In a case filed by the Central Bank of Curaçao and St. Maarten for the bankruptcy of the international Bank Banco del Orinoco N.V., two trustees were appointed by the judge, lawyers Gorsira and Van Liere of the VanEps Kunneman VanDoorne law office. The judge in this case appointment himself as the supervisor of the bankruptcy process.

Banco Del Orinoco in Curaçao, supported in this by Cartera de Inversiones Venezolanas ca and Banco Occidental de Descuento Banco Universal ca, both in Venezuela, indicate that it is particularly 'unwise' that the judge who appointed the trustees should consider himself a supervisory judge has appointed.

For this reason, Banco del Orinico N.V through its laywers Jairo Bloem, Thijs Van Zanten and Ida Linten of the law office Wijn & Stael from the Netherlands.

In support of their request for dismissal of the trustees - Michiel Gorsira and Stan van Liere - Banco del Orinoco N.V. and its shareholders took the position that the trustees could not perform their duties with the necessary independence. At least there is an appearance of a conflict of interest because the trustees and their office - VanEps Kunneman VanDoorne - have been involved in (advising on) the withdrawal of the banking license of Banco Del Orinoco by the Central Bank CBCS, the application by the Central Bank of the emergency regulation, supervision during the emergency regulation and the application for bankruptcy.

This law office also represents depositors who filed cases against Banco del Orinoco N.V.

In the past, VanEps Kunneman VanDoorne were even legal representatives of the Banco del Orinoco N.V. in two cases involving Andrade Gutiérrez Engheneria, a Brazilian construction company.

For all these reasons, Banco del Orinico N.V. is against the appointment of these trustees to handle the bankruptcy.

“You go from being a legal representative of the Banco del Orinoco N.V. to lawyers for the depositors, to representing the Central Bank while you still work for the depositors, and then you assist the Central Bank on its request for you to become trustee while you were its legal representative , and now you give legal counsel as a trustee. Now you expect everybody to think there are like Chinese walls stating that you are extremely objective and with everything you have done in the past, will not influence the decisions you make now,” said Jairo Bloem speaking of the appointment of the law office VanEps Kunneman VanDoorne as trustees.

Bloem says that this is basically a superhuman position that the law office is taking. “The law goes against this if there is a conflict of interest or even the appearance of it,” says Bloem in his reaction after the court ruling.

Bloem says that he believes that this question has not been answer. “Thank goodness the law gives us five days to appeal and that is exactly what we will do.”